Net profit rose to Rs.803.48 crore from Rs.716.15 crore a year ago and provisions rose to Rs.915.78 crore from Rs.693.07 crore. The gross non-performing assets of the bank as a percentage of advances widened to 3.08% from 2.74%.

Fresh debt accumulation, or slippages, in the December quarter was at Rs.1,221 crore but the lender managed to recover Rs.365 crore of its past bad debt. It also restructured Rs.2,034 crore of loans in the quarter, about half of which was related to a textile company.

Domestic net interest margin, or the difference between yields on advances and the cost of deposits, fell 2.80% from 2.91% in the year-ago quarter as yields on advances shrank to 11.58% from 11.93% a year ago. Cost of funds, though, increased from 6.68% to 6.77%. The corresponding global number fell to 2.36% from 2.55% a year ago. As much as 27% of its business comes from the overseas market.

Bank of India will earn net interest margin of about 3% domestically in the year to March, chairperson V.R. Iyer predicted on Monday.

Net interest income rose 11.61% to Rs.2,308 crore.

In the nine months to December, the bank’s loan book grew at a little more than 11% though it expects to achieve a credit growth of 16% for the full year, Iyer said in a conference call.

The Bank of India scrip fell 2.51% to Rs.355.25 on BSE while the benchmark index, Sensex, closed at 20103.35 points.